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From: ridder@elvira.enet.dec.com (Hans Ridder)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.hardware
Subject: Re: A1000 SOTS scsi harddrive controller sought
Message-ID: <753@shodha.dec.com>
Date: 22 Feb 90 16:14:59 GMT
References: <11678@nigel.udel.EDU>
Sender: news@shodha.dec.com
Organization: Digital Equipment Corporation, Customer Support Center
Lines: 38

In article <11678@nigel.udel.EDU> new@udel.edu (Darren New) writes:
>I think it's really a shame that no hardware developers seem to be 
>supporting SOTS any more.  When I first saw the SOTS idea, I thought 
>"Great! Unlimited expansion! No more you-must-buy-a-new-multifunction-card-
>because-your- peecee-clone-is-out-of-slots syndrome."

Well unfortunately, it doesn't work out that way.  The reason SOTS
isn't popular is becase of all of the problems it caused.  I guess you
weren't around back when all the "My X won't work when plugged into my
Y, but it will work when plugged into the Amiga alone" type postings
were popular.  There were compatibility problems out the wazoo, mostly
due to the fact that they didn't have any buffering of the bus.  A
68000, or any chip for that matter, can only take so much of a load
before it goes flakey.

[Begin Opinion]
What the 1000 (and 500) needs is a well designed expansion chassis.
With bus buffers, arbitration, and everything.  Not those cheesey
"connectors in a box" type things that Phoenix/Expansion Technologies
is peddling.  They're just as flakey as a SOTS, and add to the bad
reputation of the Amiga.  Now I know that these boxes do work in
certain configurations, but in my opinion, it's not enough of them.

Maybe I'm ignorant of some technical details, but it seems to me that
there is no valid technical reason that a 1000 can't have (Zorro II)
expansion slots (nearly) as good as a 2000.  I don't need a
co-processor slot and a video slot, just give me three or so Zorro II
slots in a nice box and I'll be happy.
[End Opinion]

No bus can be of unlimited length, so multifunction cards are probably
here to stay....

-hans
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  Hans-Gabriel Ridder			Digital Equipment Corporation
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